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HISTORY: How Did People Wake Up On Time Before Alarm Clocks?

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alarm clock - pixabay

Of all the modern inventions we rely on in our daily lives, the alarm clock is probably the most universally despised. Its jarring morning jangles jolt us uncomfortably out of our slumber, and back to reality. And yet however annoying alarm clocks are, they’re also indispensable in getting us out of bed. That raises an interesting question: How did people wake up before alarm clocks became so ubiquitous? Throughout the ages, even the simple act of telling the time has presented a huge challenge to humans that we’ve tried to solve with elaborate inventions. The ancient Greeks and Egyptians developed … Read more

FOR WRITERS: Historical Accuracy in Queer Fiction

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history - pixabay

FOR WRITERS Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Heather Rose Jones: When we write queer stories set in history, how do we deal with the historic reality of queer lives? Or, from another point of view, are queer historic novels held to a different standard of “historical accuracy” than straight ones with respect to the lives of their characters? Join the chat

SCIENCE: Vampire Girl Burial Discovered in Italy

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Vampire Child - Live Science

A 1,550-year-old “vampire burial” of a child with a rock stuffed into his or her mouth has been discovered in an ancient cemetery in Lugnano, Italy. Those who buried the child, who possibly died of malaria, may have used the rock to prevent him or her (the child’s sex isn’t known) from rising from the grave and spreading disease to other people, said a team of researchers in a statement released Oct. 12 by the University of Arizona. “I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s extremely eerie and weird,” said David Soren, an anthropology professor at the University of Arizona, … Read more

SCIENCE: Hobbits Not Related to Pygmies, Study Says

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Hobbit Home - pixabay

Ever since finding the remains of the “hobbits” — a small-statured species of ancient human — on the island of Flores in Indonesia, scientists have wondered whether the modern Pygmy people who now call the island home were in any way related to them. Now, researchers have found that the answer is “no,” the modern-day Pygmies on Flores are not related to the ancient hobbits, who go by the scientific name Homo floresiensis. While the genomes of modern Pygmy people on Flores have DNA sequences from other ancient human relatives — the Denisovans and the Neanderthals — they have “no … Read more

FOR WRITERS: Alternate History – When Things Changed

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history - pixabay

FOR WRITERS Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer John Allenson: When things changed. What stories would you like to tell that would rewrite an event in queer history? Or that would make an event queer? Examples: What if Napolean had decided to invade Scotland rather than Russia? What if Abraham Lincoln had lost the election to become POTUS? This is a legacy chat. Join the chat

SCIENCE: Did Most Men Die Off 7,000 Years Ago?

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warrior - pixabay

Modern men’s genes suggest that something peculiar happened 5,000 to 7,000 years ago: Most of the male population across Asia, Europe and Africa seems to have died off, leaving behind just one man for every 17 women. This so-called population “bottleneck” was first proposed in 2015, and since then, researchers have been trying to figure out what could’ve caused it. One hypothesis held that the drop-off in the male population occurred due to ecological or climatic factors that mainly affected male offspring, while another idea suggested that the die-off happened because some males had more power in society, and thus … Read more

HISTORY: When Gay Sex “Rocked” the World

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gay lovers - rock

An 11,000-year-old pebble believed to be one of the earliest depictions of sex is to go on tour in an LGBTQ themed exhibition. The Ain Sakhri Lovers, a figurine carved from a pebble, will be one of the artefacts shown in a new touring exhibition from the British Museum to celebrate LGBTQ history. As the people depicted in the Ain Sakhri Lovers are ambiguously gendered, the British Museum does not state they are heterosexual and have therefore included the artefact as a potential early representation of gay sex. By Jess Glass – Full Story at Pink news

SPACE: Did Medieval People Know About Planet Nine?

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Planet Nine

The far reaches of the outer solar system may be home to an icy giant — a hypothetical planet scientists have dubbed “Planet Nine.” Meanwhile, archives back on Earth are home to dozens of medieval records documenting the passage of comets through the heavens. Now, two researchers from Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland are hoping to use these old scrolls and tapestries to solve the modern astronomical mystery of Planet Nine. “We have a wealth of historical records of comets in Old English, Old Irish, Latin and Russian which have been overlooked for a long time,” said university medievalist … Read more

What We Know About Atlantis

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Atlantis - Pixabay

The idea of Atlantis — the “lost” island subcontinent often idealized as an advanced, utopian society holding wisdom that could bring world peace — has captivated dreamers, occultists and New Agers for generations. Thousands of books, magazines and websites are devoted to Atlantis, and it remains a popular topic. People have lost fortunes — and in some cases even their lives — looking for Atlantis. The Origins of Atlantis Unlike many legends whose origins have been lost in the mists of time, we know exactly when and where the story of Atlantis first appeared. The story was first told in … Read more

HISTORY: Was Ancient Greece Really a Gay Paradise?

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Greece statue - pixabay

Alastair Blanchard from the University of Queensland writes about why your ideas about homosexuality in Ancient Greece might be wrong. In recent years, we have seen significant advances won for LGBT rights through hard-fought legal cases and well-targeted political campaigns. Yet it is worth remembering that for decades, recourse to such methods was not available to LGBT people. The law-court and the parliament were deaf to their pleas. For many, it was only in their dreams that they could escape oppression. One should not underplay the importance of such fantasies. They provided succour and hope in a grim world. It … Read more